


Anything

by notcrindy



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Child Abuse, Gen, ableism is gonna be a huge theme of this shit, and because projecting onto elves is what i do i guess, because I said so, hello this is an AU wherein Taako is physically disabled
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-12
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2019-03-17 05:30:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13652409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notcrindy/pseuds/notcrindy
Summary: Two twins are born too early.One of them manages to emerge unscathed.The other winds up physically disabled.(Taako has my disability AU bc fuck the police.)





	Anything

As twins, they already had trouble enough.

The world didn’t want them, wasn’t big enough for them. When they became certain she was not only being burdened with a single child but two of them at once, she cried; he raged at Fate for such a slight against his family. It wasn’t as though they hadn’t wanted to aspire to have children someday, but “someday” was still far off. They were both poor as dirt for the most part, ill-equipped and unprepared for the challenges of raising children, and slowly coming to terms with the fact that neither of them was particularly mentally healthy. 

So when they were early, perilously so, it was even worse.

The difference between both of them could’ve been measured in a single pound. She emerged first, and was three pounds, terrifyingly small; he emerged next, only two, and everyone marveled that something so frail and fragile could exist in the world at all. For a brief period of time, though the newfound parents would’ve been hesitant to admit it, it looked as though their curse of twins might resolve itself. It was  _ possible _ the first twin might survive the birth, but there was no way the second one would be able to manage. His brain was bleeding; his heart had a hole in it which needed to be fixed; his lungs struggled to take in air, and he had his work cut out for him.

One pound made all the difference.

He survived with the assistance of clerics who couldn’t bear to see such a small child meet such a bitter end; she pulled through with sheer willpower. She was named Chaalupa, for the spitfire that she was; he was named Taako as a hasty afterthought, never truly meant to survive anyway. Though the parents were ill-fated and ill-prepared, struck ill by circumstance and perhaps more, they were not  _ bad _ people. Both twins would have time and time again in the future to reflect upon this, and this was the conclusion they would come to. They hadn’t asked for their lot in life; they tried the best they could.

When it became apparent that she was learning to walk and hitting major milestones with ease, but he wasn’t, their father was the one to scour the land for clerics willing to try to heal him. Childhood before he knew it was marked by healing spell after healing spell, hope against hope, and frustration every time he couldn’t manage to walk. He learned to crawl, but much later than he should have. They reassured his parents that he’d have a slight limp at worst, but when it became apparent he would not walk  _ at all, _ they lost that hope.

They lost the children soon, too, after a particularly bad manic episode from their mother endangered both twins. They were sent to stay with their aunt after that, and she was the one who used magic to fashion him his own walker, with red handles and a little pink flower basket on it at the end. She was the one who created braces for his feet, which he hated, but which she customized with magic. She was the one who encouraged him to use crutches, which he  _ also _ hated, but were hot pink (which was his  _ favorite _ color, natch).

She helped to dress him lovingly alongside his sister and was always supportive. As he learned to walk in the walker she would let him try to help in the kitchen, to stir until it hurt too much, to make cookies, to try to measure things out. His sister Lup would help him out with the things that seemed more delicate, required more fine motor skills, and in this way they learned to cook together.

It was good at Tia’s, really. It had been a nice time.

But she died.

When she died, their abuelito was the next of kin. He took them in and did not take Taako in gently. Gone were the days of loving encouragement of steps, of walkers. He took one look at the flower basket and deemed it frivolous,  _ raged _ at the impractical color of the crutches and braces, and told him he could just use a goddamn wheelchair like any proper invalid is supposed to do. If someone with whatever  _ disease _ he’d found himself plagued with managed to survive very long, it would be good practice for being old.

So he spent time at Abuelito’s in a wheelchair, plain and dull, and then he was made to work. He stumbled and faltered often; it was not his fault. He could not milk the cows. He could not churn the butter. Getting around was exhausting by himself, so his twin tried to help push him, and was told not to. Lup was told not to help because Taako had to learn what it meant to  _ overcome _ this, this thing that shamed his entire family, this thing that brought shame onto him. It was painful, but he’d try it. He’d get stuck very often; he’d make blunders and then be hit or locked up without food.

She’d sneak out to visit him and provide for him.

On one such day, she made a decision.

She made all the decisions.

“Taako, Abuelito’s  _ bites, _ ” she’d whispered through the barn door.

“Yeah,” he agreed. “But where’re we gonna go?”

They were only twelve at the time, not nearly as small for humans as it was for elves. They should have remained under proper adult supervision for much longer than this; they  _ needed _ to. He’d endure any abuse he had to endure, because by this point he felt pretty fucking powerless to it. Pretty fucking hungry, too.

“Dunno,” Lup said, “but we’re leaving.”

“What? We can’t do that. I mean,  _ you _ can do that,” he corrected himself, “but not  _ me. _ ” Lup was more than capable of thriving on her own, physically at least. It was possible she’d run into problems because of  _ recklessness like this,  _ and it would’ve been nice to be around for that… ...to keep Lup alive. But there was no way he could do it. He needed too much assistance. He needed too much help.

“So what,” she whispered, “you’re gonna stay like this  _ forever?  _ At the mercy of Abuelito’s whims until the old man  _ croaks?  _ Nu- _ uh, _ Koko. No. I’m gonna take  _ care _ of you, okay? I can do it. We both know I do it better than that old fart anyhow.”

“How exactly do you plan on sneaking  _ me _ out? A wheelchair makes me pretty fucking obvious, Lulu.”

“I don’t,” she said, simply. “We’re just gonna run.”

“ _What?_ ”

"Trust me on this, okay?"

He did. He trusted Lup with his life.

So when the time came and Abuelito let him out if he promised to be good, they waited. Lup fetched him some food, as she always did during Abuelito’s outbursts. Then, she re-emerged with a bag, stuffed the rolls down in it, raced to Taako’s side with a speed that the old man couldn’t possibly match, and they  _ ran. _

Taako feared for every bump and dip in the ground; he went tense at several points, afraid to fall out. But as their grandfather cursed their names both and spit on the ground in fury, he couldn’t advance to match them. They were free in almost no time at all.

“What now?” Taako asked, constantly looking to Lup for direction.

“Now we can do  _ anything we want, _ ” she grinned.

She vowed to turn his wheelchair hot pink, at least.

**Author's Note:**

> so... ...i have some big hopes for this one. um, thanks to the TAZ Discord for being so encouraging and friendly. <3 i love you all. more later.


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